


Tournament of Triumvirates

by pseudonimous



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Adventure & Romance, F/M, Fluff, Harry Potter - Freeform, Harry Potter Next Generation, Romance, Triwizard Tournament, scorose
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-14
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-09 06:54:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4338353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pseudonimous/pseuds/pseudonimous
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Since the Triwizard Tournament of 1994, the tradition has been discontinued between the magical schools of Europe. In 2023, however, a tournament of triumvirates – three groups of three wizards from each school – would be held. Albus, representing Hogwarts, Rose from Beauxbatons, and Scorpius from Durmstrang are the unlikely trio matched together by the perennial Goblet of Fire.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Entrance

**Tournament of Triumvirates**

**I. Entrance**

* * *

The Great Hall held its breath as Professor Friedan, the Headmaster, announced the news.

Albus dared not to release his breath, in fear of diverting attention to himself. In his six years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he was sure that the Hall had never resonated such silence before.

A mere second later, as if the Hall had released its breath, the familiar buzz of excited chatter started among the students.

"Tournament?"

"'Reckon it will be like the Triwizard Tournament?"

"What's that, a tournament?"

"The one Harry Potter participated in!"

Friedan, with an amused twinkle in his eye, lifted his chalice and tapped its side with a spoon to get the Hall's attention.

"Attention, attention students! Before you all excitedly gossip between yourselves, there are still a few ground rules you must be familiar with."

Albus resisted a peek at his older brother James – a boy with rough, windswept hair and an attitude that defied the core of school rules. He wondered how James was going to take this "rules" nonsense. He was leaning against the table, propped up on an elbow, chin tilted towards the Headmaster's seat, and eyes alert at Friedan's next sentences, no doubt finding a loophole within them.

"This tournament – the Tournament of Triumvirates – will take place between the three magical schools of Europe: our dear Hogwarts, the lovely Beauxbatons Academy, and of course, the Durmstrang Institute. However, as similar as it is to the Triwizard Tournament, the Department of Magical Games and Sports and the magical schools have decided to make the competition more…friendly, I should say."

Albus raised his eyebrows, analyzing Friedan's declaration. It was obvious that the magical schools would never emulate the Triwizard Tournament ever again, due to the horrific results of the tournament of 1994, with Cedric Diggory's death. _This will certainly be interesting,_ Albus mused.

"Instead of the three competitors representing each school, there shall be three trios competing against one another. Each trio shall be fairly represented by each school, carefully picked by the Goblet of Fire, creating an atmosphere of camaraderie and an environment for teamwork. Together, the prevailing triumvirate will be crowned the first ever champions of the Tournament of Triumvirates!" Friedan paused for effect, excitedly clapping his hands together.

"Well well, now, students! The other two magical schools shall arrive in two weeks' time. And oh yes, one final thing! Only students aged 16 and older will be allowed to sign up for participation."

Albus couldn't help but smirk at the dejected faces of the younger Gryffindors around him. Turning around in his seat, he locked eyes with James, who waggled his eyebrows suggestively towards his group Quidditch mates. Albus, however, had no intent on participating. Chess and Quidditch were probably the farthest he would ever get to competitive sports, and he certainly had other things on his mind…

He shot a glance at Catalina Wood, Ravenclaw's Chaser, on the other side of the Great Hall. Her attention, however, was shortly diverted by one of the Scamander twins. Scowling, Albus flipped his new school robes behind him and headed towards Gryffindor Tower.

On his way between the transitioning staircases, he heard a familiar voice next to his left ear. "What's got your knickers in such a twist, Potter?" He turned, seeing the jovial face of his best friend, Leon Finnegan.

"Nothing much, mate. Tired s'all."

"Tired? This is the most exciting news we've had since James Potter was dumped by Jessica O'Byrne!"

Albus couldn't help but burst into laughter at the memory of his older brother, the known playboy of Hogwarts, sitting disheartened by the Common Room's fireplace, eating chocolate ice cream after the flirty redhead dumped him for Ravenclaw's Seeker. "Served him right though, ain't it? After leading on all those birds…"

Leon chuckled alongside him. "Speaking of birds…how's that cousin of yours, Rose Weasley?"

Albus' head jerked up at the thought of his cousin. "Rose? What about her, Finnegan? She's on the other side of the English isles! Merlin's beard, you can't be into long-distance relationships?" He sent a hearty jab into Leon's side, in case he did get any funny ideas about his cousin, regardless if she was on the other side of the European continent.

"She transferred to Beauxbatons after our first year. Ya think she's coming in two weeks? Hey, maybe we could get quite friendly with those French mates of her!"

Completely disregarding the brilliance of Leon's suggestion (although Albus did mentally punch himself in the face for forgetting to mention that to his cousin), Albus leapt towards his dormitory, throwing apart his luggage to find a spare piece of parchment. He had not paused to think that Rose would be coming as a part of Beauxbatons.

The idea of it made him as excited as child on Christmas day – it had been so long since he had met Rose, one of his closest friends and favorite cousins (he'll never say that in front of Fred, though). Since Uncle Ron's promotion in the Ministry, the Granger-Weasleys had begun to take farther vacations in the summer. During Christmastime, Rose always enjoyed staying in France with her mates and reveling in the Parisian winter. As a result, it had been a record of almost two years since Albus had chatted face-to-face with his cousin.

He rummaged through his suitcase to find the later letters she had sent him. On it was Beauxbatons' address and her dorm number. He hurriedly numbered the parchment, wrote his message, and sent it off on his owl, Fallon.

Minutes later, only after Albus had finished cleaning up his mess and flopped onto his bed, did Leon pipe up, "Say, mate, did you ask Rose about any of her French friends."

Albus slapped his palm to his forehead and groaned.

* * *

_Dearest Albus,_

_I am beyond ecstatic to say that I shall be coming to Hogwarts in two weeks time! It has truly been too long since I have been under that enchanted ceiling and spoken to my peers without all the 'Pardon' and 'Excusez-moi.'Send my love to the Wotters. And do tell James that if he asks me to introduce him to a French friend of mine, I will NOT do so._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Rose_

* * *

Two weeks full of exams, homework, and late night Quidditch practices flew by, and the atmosphere of Hogwarts was livelier than it was during the holidays. Strolling through the corridors, Al often caught fragments of poorly pronounced German coming from girls. Even in his dormitory, his mates were practicing a few phrases in French. Albus dared not try any of what he heard on his cousin, in fear that he might accidentally slip a sexual pun out (Finnegan began to integrate French innuendos in his daily conversations).

At six o'clock sharp, the students filed into the Great Hall following the House Prefects. Tonight, the ceiling was charmed to display more constellations than usual, and the candles wafted a homely vanilla scent.

Friedan was perched atop his podium, his graying beard neatly trimmed, and his robes a shimmery enchanted fabric that reflected dark red, blue, emerald, or gold depending on the viewer's angle. The Hall's whispers began to settle into a rich, attentive silence as the Headmaster raised his arms in emphasis with his proclamation.

"Students of Hogwarts!" he bellowed. "Let us give our full attention to the prestigious Durmstrang Institute as they make their grand entrance."

The wooden doors of the Great Hall swung open, and a musical fanfare marked the entrance of the Durmstrang students. Albus could not help but gape at their uniformity – the confident, sure strides of the students who commanded the magical orchestra, clad in dark velvet suits and dresses. They marched in time to the beat of the invisible drums, entering in a single file, lined like soldiers ready for battle.

Leon shot an impressed glance at Albus, who nodded, almost expecting the students to salute as the large form of the Durmstrang Headmaster stepped through the doors. Behind him was a procession of older students, clad in similar velvet uniform with fur capes proudly resting against their backs. The invisible orchestra had ceased playing and only the constant beat of the drum continued.

A familiar boy with pale angled features proceeded to make his way in front of the Headmaster. He transformed his wand into a long cane made of elm, earning surprised _ooohs_ from the crowd. He continued to walk, thumping his cane in the rhythm of the drum, stopped, and launched the cane high into the air. Then, he vanished, and in his place, a boy with bright red hair under a fur cap caught the object.

The cavalcade continued in a uniform manner, as more students appeared, likewise transforming their wands into canes and performing various transfiguring spells. The Great Hall was transfixed by the magic of the Durmstrang students, yet Albus could not help but be distracted by the familiar pale figure early in the procession. He caught glimpses of the blonde boy who stood out among the darker coloring of his peers, yet there was something that Albus could not exactly pinpoint about him, as if he had seen him somewhere before.

Before Albus could determine who the boy was, he was interrupted by the applause that erupted around him. The Durmstrang students stood in filed lines facing Hogwarts with the fur-clad students, probably of equal rank as Prefects, at the head of the line.

As the applause died down, Friedan took the opportunity to clear his throat and introduce the Beauxbatons Academy.

Next to him on the table, Al felt Leon wedge an elbow against his side. He swiftly ignored his best friend's movement and let his eyes hover impatiently on the closed doors. Unlike the powerful entrance of Durmstrang, the Beauxbatons entered with poise and grace, commonly stereotyped with the French. An invisible orchestra of harps followed the ballet dancers, bursting gracefully through the wooden doors.

Out of the corner of his eye, Albus could see Leon and his fellow Gryffindor friends ogle the bottoms of the French girls, pirouetting down the aisles. He couldn't blame them, honestly; although the Beauxbatons wore high-collared long sleeve blouses, their short A-line blue skirts fluttered to reveal a lot of skin _down there._

Albus quickly shook his head, reminded himself that these were Rose's classmates he was ogling, and hoped to Merlin that her skirt was nowhere near as scandalous.

It seemed that Merlin was not in his favor.

Behind the tall chic figure of the Headmistress, a familiar head of red hair peeked out from behind the signature blue Beauxbatons beret. Rose Weasley's hair, however, was in the best condition Albus had ever seen in his sixteen years of cousinhood with her. Gone were the frizzy locks which almost completely engulfed her small face; now, her voluminous ginger curls revealed a heart-shaped face with delicate features softly defined by the tools of makeup.

"Is that ROSE WEASLEY?" Albus heard an unmistakable bellow of surprise from his older brother, a few seats down. Apparently, the rest of the Great Hall had heard him too, and to no surprise, Rose blushed the infamous Weasley blush – although her cheeks now only tinged a slight pink.

Turning her attention back to the task at hand, Rose and several other blonde girls in berets began casting ribbons in tune with the harp. Rose waved her wand to add blue ribbons to the enchanted candles, flicking slightly at the end of her spell to leave behind a puff of glitter which the Hogwarts students enthusiastically reached towards.

The girls continued their procession down the aisle, now transforming the ribbons into butterflies in rhythm with the tune of Canon in D. To Albus' annoyance, Rose was still skipping around in that ridiculous Beauxbatons outfit. Even though she had a blue jacket clasped stylishly to her shoulder, unlike the other girls who only sported their blouse, Albus still felt an odd wave of protectiveness through his stomach as he saw his cousin's legs looked at a couple seconds longer than they should have by most of the male population in the Hall. Merlin, he bet even the Durmstrang Headmaster was ogling her.

Out of annoyance, Al turned his eyes towards the pale blonde boy who had earlier captured his attention. He narrowed his eyes as he continued to wrack his brain at the familiarity of the boy's face. When Friedan clapped his hands together, delivering his traditional dinner speech, Albus decided to turn his head away from the newcomers to give his head a break. He had begun to develop a slight headache after trying to keep up with the magic performed by their guests.

It was, after all, a good thing for poor Al to turn his head away from the front of the Hall. What he would've seen would have left him with a larger headache than what he had. In fact, he might have even burst a vessel if he had seen Scorpius Malfoy check out his cousin not once, but twice in front of the Great Hall, and her ears were red enough even halfway through dinner as proof of it.

* * *

**A/N:** _I do not own Harry Potter. Crazy plot idea for a multichap in the middle of the night! Please review for my random stroke of creativity._


	2. [Re] Introduction

**Tournament of Triumvirates**

**II. (Re) Introduction**

* * *

The next morning after the arrival of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, Albus entered the Great Hall, greeted by a louder buzz of chatter than usual. To his surprise, almost everyone was awake – heck, even James was awake and rowdy. This was a rare sight on Saturday mornings, since students usually preferred to exchange their breakfast time for extra sleeping time on the weekends.

Exhausted from last night's long introductions and tours for the visiting students (Al was unfortunately dragged on a tour by one of his Prefect buddies), he headed towards the Gryffindor table, hoping to grab his favorite blueberry scone and cup of coffee before his fellow House mates did. Halfway down the aisle, however, Al's attention was distracted to the front of the Great Hall, where an assembly of students was crowded in front of an unfamiliar object.

 _"The Goblet of Fire shall be placed in the middle of the Great Hall as of tomorrow, at eight o'clock sharp. Any bold student, ages 16 or older, will be allowed to write their name on a slip of parchment and charm it into this object."_ Albus faintly remembered an enthusiastic Friedan explaining the rules and code of conduct of the Tournament, but, exhausted as he was, he had tuned out everything the Headmaster had said.

"Potter!" someone shrieked, and Al's head jerked up, an involuntary reaction to his last name. It was in the direction of the goblet, and if not directed at him, Al's instincts gave him a wild guess that it was probably directed at James Potter, the trouble maker of the family.

He sped up his pace towards the sound and elbowed his way through the crowd of students, in the direction of his brothers' messy auburn hair. Al wedged himself further past the younger students, blocked by the age barrier, and succeeded in making his way into the wide circle that held the Goblet of Fire.

In the middle of the circle, to the left of the Goblet, stood James, his wiry and fit frame relaxed as he took in the center of attention. He lazily held up two pieces of parchment in his left hand, while his right hand likewise held onto his wand. The person who yelled his last name, Al soon realized, was Jessica O'Byrne, James' ex-girlfriend.

"You wouldn't dare put his name in there!" her face was contorted in fury, and her skin flushed red as she pointed her wand shakily at James.

"What's wrong now, O'Byrne? Afraid your darling boyfriend can't handle a little tourney?"

"James Siri-" Jessica opened her mouth to shriek, and Al took his chance to barge in the middle of the two. He patted Jessica sympathetically on the shoulder, hoping to relay the message that he would take charge of the situation from here.

"James, if you aren't going to throw away that piece of parchment and stop acting like an immature brat, I swear family ties or not, I'm going to hex you-"

James' face stretched into a lopsided grin, eerily similar to Ron's. His, however, had a ghost of a smirk on his lips. "Oh, dear brother! I'm glad you're here. I was actually about to put both our names into the Goblet," he said, jerking the parchment into Al's line of vision.

 _Albus Severus Potter, Hogwarts,_ was scrawled messily on the piece right next to James' own name.

 _He was just causing a scene to mess with Jessica. The git._ Before Al could open his mouth to object, James quickly flicked his wand and transfigured the parchment into two paper doves that were sent flying straight into the electric blue flames of the Goblet.

Al felt the blood rush to his head, in anger and disbelief. _No,_ _ **no, NO.**_ He was not going to relive the same experience as his father, with his name being put into the goblet against his will. His heart was pounding, fists beginning to clench, and he felt the rush of adrenaline pulse through his body as he spun around, aiming to swing at James' face.

"Al?" a musical voice to his left side pulled him back to a calmer state of mind. His flushed expression was met with one of pure concern, on the face of his cousin Rose Weasley. He quickly glanced at her torso and mentally breathed a sigh of relief to see that she was wearing casual clothing, similar to the rest of the student population. She lifted one of her thin manicured hands and placed her palm across his forehead.

"You're burning up, Al."

Al heard a dark chuckle from James, and quickly sent a death glare in his direction. By now, about half the crowd had dispersed, as some were curious to watch the O'Byrne and Potter showdown. A couple of Durmstrang boys hung within the age barrier, as if unsure to place their name inside the goblet, and only several young Hogwarts students strayed around the edge of the magical object.

"That was an impressive transfiguration, James," Rose complimented her cousin, angling her body towards them both so that they formed a triangle.

"You know what's impressive? Your French friends," James countered, sending a sly wink in Rose's direction. She proceeded to falsely gag into his jumper and slap his arm rather painfully. Meanwhile the cousins were reuniting, Al's eyes wandered back to the group of Durmstrang boys. Among them was the familiar boy with pale coloring. His attention accidentally lingered longer than necessary, and the boy, sensing that someone was watching him, moved his eyes to meet his.

Olive green eyes met with a pair of cold, yet familiar stormy gray eyes.

"What are you looking at, bro? Albie got a fever?" James taunted as he took his hand and waved it up and down in front of Al's face. His brothers' eyes wandered towards Al's point of focus. Suddenly, his face lit up into a devious smile as it rested on the pale boy, who was eerily eyeing up James' stare.

"Ah, Scorpius Malfoy! Long time no see!" James jumped from his spot by Al's side and bombarded Scorpius (the poor boy) with a one-armed hug that suggested that they had been long-lost buddies.

 _Scorpius. Malfoy. Scorpius Malfoy? Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, the one with a middle name almost as bad as mine?_ Al's brain was working overtime, and he felt a rush of lightheadedness run through his body. He shook off the feeling and stepped towards the Durmstrang boys, James, and Rose – just to see his aforementioned cousin making acquaintances with the group.

Rose, ever the polite lady, extended her hand and flashed the boys a bright smile. She could sense the tall, dark boy's eyes linger on her figure longer than necessary. She inwardly sighed, making a note to wear clothing that concealed more. _It was so freeing in France,_ she thought, being able to wear the shortest skirts and yet the rest of the Veela population would still make her curves insignificant.

She met Scorpius' gaze and shook his hand firmly, reminiscent of first-year memories in Potions. She was sitting behind Al and his Gryffindor newfound friend with her Ravenclaw roommate, Janice Bell, when Al's very pale friend turned around and introduced himself to her. She remembered quite vividly her embarrassment, as she blatantly asked Scorpius why he was not in Slytherin.

"Long time no see," she greeted.

"Likewise," he said, and she noted that Scorpius' voice had turned into a smooth tenor. Perhaps it was a German thing with the way they spoke.

"No more Gryffindor for you?"

"It's a shame," Scorpius agreed and they both cracked a shy grin at each other.

 _Hey, maybe he isn't so bad after all,_ a small voice in the back of her head popped up.

Rose heard a quiet cough to her left and saw Al standing there awkwardly, waiting his turn to reunite with a childhood friend. She quickly let go of Scorpius' hand and clasped her hands behind her back, waiting for the boys to get through their strange introductory remarks.

"You've been staring, Potter."

"You as well," Al retorted, although his face did reveal a slight blush.

"Not as much as at your cousin," Scorpius smirked and the rest of his Durmstrang gang, who was making animated conversation with James, chuckled from the side. Rose rolled her eyes and pressed her lips into a tight line.

"Did your mother ever teach you it was rude to stare?" Al could sense that this was a sensitive topic for Rose, although he had no idea what she meant at Scorpius.

Scorpius, however, seemed amused at this turn of events. "She never said it was a crime if I directed my attention at pretty things." He sent her a winning smirk, which looked oddly familiar to James'.

"Before I get any more offended at being the topic of your eye's fancy, _Malfoy,"_ Rose's eyes narrowed and her voice dripped dangerously low, "I'll take my leave now."

She whipped out her wand from the pocket of her overall-skirt, so fast that Al thought she was about to Apparate. Instead, Rose also pulled from her pocket a small piece of parchment, which she quickly charmed her name on in neat script.

"Woah, Rosie, what are you doing?" James stalked over to her, obviously surprised that she was going to enter as a candidate for the tournament. "This tournament isn't meant for delicate bookworms like you," he nervously laughed.

"James, this tournament isn't meant for arrogant trouble makers like you either," Rose pursed her lips. Then, she did something surprising. Her thin manicured hands quickly shed the parchment into minute pieces, enclosing them in the palm of her hand. Rose opened her palm and blew the pieces of paper towards the Hogwarts ceiling and took out her wand, enchanting it into leaves that flew into the blue fire. As the ripped up pieces of parchment reached the flames, the fire flared brighter and dimmed.

What was left of the crowd around the goblet clapped quietly, as the Durmstrang boys whistled at Rose's skill. Looking particularly triumphant, she tossed her ginger curls behind her back and was about to traipse away when Scorpius called her back.

"I'll hopefully see you in the tournament, Weasley."

This was the first time Al had seen Rose so riled up at a person outside their immediate family. Usually, she was so calm and collected, but this statement from Scorpius had caused her to whip around in a wave of ginger fury.

She glared at him indignantly, as Scorpius took out a piece of parchment and lazily levitated it towards the Goblet. Several feet above the blue flames, the parchment transfigured itself into a scorpion, which scuttled its way at the edge of the flame and exploded similarly to Rose's spell, and the remnants of the parchment floated inside the object.

James swiftly whistled from the side, and a few young Beauxbatons girls were curiously staring at Scorpius, batting their eyelashes. "Looks like you met your match, Rosie," James remarked.

At that statement, Rose turned a subtle pink, but her ears transformed into a flushed red shade. _Arrogant prats, the whole lot of them,_ Rose thought as she stormed towards the Ravenclaw table where a fourth of the Beauxbatons Academy was seated. _Except Al!_ she mentally added.

If there was one thing Rose Weasley hated, it was a boy who had no sense of morality and objectified women. Turns out, not only James Potter one of them, but also Scorpius Malfoy and his obnoxious Durmstrang friends.

From the center of the Great Hall, where Al and the rest of the boys remained standing, Scorpius turned back to Al.

"You changed a lot, mate. So did your cousin."

Al relaxed at the obvious decrease in awkwardness, now that Rose had left. "No, YOU changed a lot. I could hardly recognize you."

Scorpius smirked, "Puberty served me well."

Al could only shake his head and said self-deprecatingly, "Puberty made me Harry Potter II." To his surprise, his newly reacquainted friend snorted (quite elegantly, ifhe may say so), "At least it doesn't make you look like a Death Eater of the 90's."

Al allowed himself to burst into a loud guffaw and threw himself in a large bear hug at Scorpius Malfoy, to the surprise of the Durmstrang boys and the lingering Hogwarts students.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I do not own Harry Potter. Bromance at its best! The selection of candidates will begin in the next chapter, and ah, the competition behind Scorpius and Rose has reared its ugly head.


	3. Chosen

**Tournament of Triumvirates**

**III. Chosen**

* * *

The arrival of the foreign students did nothing to prevent the Hogwarts staff from straying from their syllabi and lesson plans. Instead, it gave them more freedom in choosing new topics to educate not only their Hogwarts students, but also the top-tiered students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. It turns out that only the top tenth percentile of fifth to seventh year students at the two respective schools were allowed to travel to Hogwarts to gain exposure to magical English culture. Each traveling student was then assigned to the selected tier of the brightest Hogwarts students of their age group. This, of course, earned many groans from the Hogwarts students who were now not only expected to show up on time in class to make a favorable impression to their foreign peers, but also expected to answer full-detailed questions on the history of Hogwarts and the culture of the school.

"Eeeeeeuuurgh," Albus complained to his fellow dormmates, flopping his face into his pillow after a grueling double period of a History of Magic. A double period of any class was bad enough, but a combination of History of Magic, class with Ravenclaws, and the addition of foreign students who wouldn't stop questioning every aspect of English culture made Al want to launch himself off the cliffs of Hogwarts.

Leon peered at Al, sleepily from behind his Potions textbook, "Whas'up, mate?"

Before Al had the chance to respond, however, the figure of a slim blonde boy crash-landed onto Al's bed, earning a strangled yelp.

"Can you not be such a prat, Scorpius?" came Al's muffled voice from the pillow.

Scorpius gave a rare, sheepish smile towards Leon. "Haha, sorry. You guys don't know how good you have it here. The beds at Durmstrang are probably spelled to feel like you're lying on rocks."

"Are the rock-hard beds another reason why you kept on asking questions in History of Magic? Some people actually want to return to their feather mattresses," Al quipped, sitting up and ruffling his hair back into its regular messy hairdo.

Leon threw down his textbook and guffawed, "Is this why you sound like Peeves sucked the life out of you? History of Magic with foreign students? HAHAH—"

Leon's laughter was cut off as Al charmed a pillow to his face. As he removed the dented pillow from his forehead, he saw his best friend jump off the bed, slam the door, and retreat down the steps.

"So what's got him into a sour mood?" he asked Scorpius, who was now able to luxuriously lie on the queen-sized bed, arms crossed behind his head.

The blonde boy nonchalantly shrugged, and began examining the ceiling with great interest. "Oh, I think it was something Rose said during History of Magic?"

"Wait, she was in your class?"

"She's with some Ravenclaw girl – something Wood. She was pretty fit," Scorpius' eyes left the ceiling and landed on Leon, sending him a lopsided smirk. His smirk quickly left his face as he reacted to catch the pillow that Leon had launched at him.

"Hey! What was that for?"

"Sorry. That was an automatic response from my personal loyalty. Thou must throw a pillow at thy best friend's enemy who is possibly getting at his girl." Leon flashed an apologetic smile across the room, but leaned forward on his bed, as if he was planning to discuss a secret with Scorpius. "But, I'm not going to lie, Catalina Wood is fit as fuck."

Scorpius threw the pillow back at Leon's smirking face. "Wanker."

"You know it… For future references, just cast a silencing and a shield charm, alright?"

This earned Leon another accurate pillow to the face.

* * *

Dinnertime had come quickly, to the excitement of all the students. Tonight was the night where the trios of triumvirates would be chosen by the Goblet of Fire. The halls were filled with excited chatter, from both young and old students, who would only quiet down when the Headmasters took their seats at the head of the Great Hall.

Before dinner began, Professor Friedan and the other Headmasters took advantage of the time to proudly preach the importance of getting to know others within the magical community - their booming voices emphasizing the presence of unity amongst the younger generations of witches and wizards.

Rose couldn't help but roll her eyes from her seat at the Ravenclaw table, where she was sitting next to her newfound friend and roommate, Catalina Wood. Catalina had caught her eyeroll and smiled knowingly at her reaction to the headmasters' words. The school liaisons had done quite a good job magically pairing students from the other schools with one another, under the consideration of grades, hobbies, and personality type. Yet, both girls still heard whispers from (probably jealous) Hogwarts girls referring to the Beauxbatons students as "make-up wearing bints who can wave wands."

 _So much for wizarding unity_ , she thought.

Professor Friedan tapped his wand to his chalice, indicating the end of their main course and the transition to desserts. The tables, to Rose's surprise, were magically transformed into levitating serving trays, allowing students to leave their respective tables and mingle amongst one another.

Rose stuck close by Catalina, hoping to be able to find her Beauxbatons friends who had been matched up with girls from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. To her dismay, the girls did not run into Rose's friends, but rather into the very person that Rose did not want to meet: Scorpius Malfoy.

It wasn't as if she originally was prejudiced against Scorpius – it was the fact that every time they encountered one another, he just began to act more like an arrogant prat. And Rose had had enough of arrogant prats, especially those who had an ego larger than their brains and thought that their obnoxious laughter and smirks were attractive to apparently half of the blind female population.

As the girls approached the group of boys, consisting of Albus in the lead, flanked by Scorpius and Leon Finnegan, Rose mentally counted to ten.

 _Shoulders relaxed, chin up,_ _and breathe,_ she heard the voice of her etiquette Mademoiselle in the back of her head. She was determined to not let her temper get ahead of herself, as it did at breakfast.

"Catalina, Rose," Albus greeted them. Rose noted that her cousin's eyes lasted on Catalina's face a moment longer than necessary.

 _Ah, so this will be interesting,_ she thought. It would be fun to play matchmaker for her favorite cousin during her short time here, especially if the Goblet of Fire didn't choose her to be a candidate.

"Hello boys. How was dinner?" Catalina chirped, unaware of the obvious attention Al was giving her.

"Wonderful. I can never get enough!" Leon responded, earning chuckles from the entire group. "Would you ladies like some cheesecake?" With the girls' earnest nods, he reached over to pluck a handful of bite-sized cheesecake cubes out of the levitating trays and handed them to Catalina and Rose.

"How's the English food treating you?" Rose lifted her head to respond to Leon's comment and noted that he had very soft, green eyes that complimented his dark olive complexion. Shaking the notion that her cousin's best mate was very much attractive, Rose laughed and responded, "It tastes just like home!"

"Home is, indeed, where the heart is," said a deep voice to her right, interrupting her conversation with Leon. Scorpius was twiddling his cheesecake cube between his fingers and casually observing Al and Catalina, who had moved several steps away from the group. The two seemed to be involved in their own little conversation, with Al speaking animatedly and Catalina nodding enthusiastically along.

Rose raised an eyebrow at the sight. _Well, at least that confirmed my suspicions,_ she thought.

"Planning to play matchmaker, Weasley?" Scorpius said, noting her raised eyebrow. "From the looks of it," he continued, "it seems like Al has never snogged a girl before in his entire life. Isn't that right, Leon?"

Rose couldn't help but release a small, strangled laugh from her throat at the comment. Leon, however, was crouched over laughing at this statement, and trying not to garner attention from Al or Catalina.

The group's laughter was shortly subsided by the clanging of the Headmaster's chalice (for the third term that night, dear Merlin). A hush fell over the Great Hall, as the Headmasters rose from their seats in the front of the Hall. Rose could sense all the eyes in the Hall follow the three, as they descended from the staff's elevated seating area and headed towards the Goblet of Fire.

Once they had crossed through the age barrier, the three wizards took out their wands and positioned themselves in a triangular formation around the Goblet. "The moment that you have all been waiting for – the selection of the nine trios – will begin now," announced Professor Friedan.

The three placed their wands next to the blue fire of the Goblet and began chanting an incantation in hushed voices. Rose could sense the power of the magic being conducted, and it tugged at her heart, causing it to pound louder. She could swear that Leon and Scorpius could hear her pulse, but when she glanced sideways at Scorpius, his furrowed brow indicated that he was as anxious as she was.

There was a brief moment of silence as the Headmasters finished their incantation. Then, from the blue fire, three scraps of paper flew into the hands of each individual Headmaster, accompanied by astonished gasps and mutterings from all the students.

Surprisingly, Rose's Headmistress, Madame Poussin, a quiet lady, took the initiative to speak first in her heavy French accent. "Zee first trio to represent our three schools in zee Tournament vill be consisted of," she paused to glance at the scrap of paper, "Camille Laurent from Beauxbatons Academy!"

A roar of approval came from the Beauxbaton girls, and Rose could not help but join in with the "Bonne chance!" (good luck!). After all, Camille was the equivalent of the Head Girl at Beauxbatons, equipped with her Veela charms of sea-green eyes and blonde hair, quick wit, and athleticism. Despite this, however, Rose could not dismiss the gnawing feeling of desire in the pit of her stomach – the desire to be chosen, to be acknowledged, and to make a mark on the world beyond being the born daughter of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.

Wrapped in her own thoughts, Rose almost missed the selection of the other two candidates. From Durmstrang, surprisingly, was a seventh year girl named Claudia Kruger – a wiry and thin brunette who had an angular face. Finally, from Hogwarts was Finnick Gregory, the school's Head Boy and Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain.

"Kruger, who's she?" Rose heard Leon question Scorpius.

"At Durmstrang, we prize ourselves on our academic skills in the field of potion-making and defense against the Dark Arts. Kruger is one of the best duelers in the school and extremely skilled in brewing potions."

"Wow," Rose couldn't help but reveal her admiration for the thin brunette, who reached only to Gregory's shoulder.

"Impressive, right?" he chuckled in agreement. "Durmstrang isn't really a school for ballerinas or the like… No offense," Scorpius threw a smirk over his shoulder at her.

 _Un, deux, trios,_ Rose mentally counted and exhaled. She could feel her face turning a shade of pink darker than her blush and her wand hand twitched with the urge of hexing Scorpius, no, Malfoy, off the English isles. She saw the amusement flicker in his eyes, and she angrily turned away, flicking her curls, lest she lose her temper.

She closed her eyes, clenched her jaw, and wished she could disappear back to France, where the boys at least had more manners and she wasn't just seen as another Weasley. She was Rose Weasley, after all – the only girl in school with red freckles, the first in her year to cast a Patronus, the girl who can read a chapter from her textbook without falling asleep – she was…

"Rose Weasley from Beauxbatons!"

She blinked. The world seemed to spin in slow motion all around her. She saw the Beauxbatons girls clapping their hands excitedly, the astonishment on her numerous cousins' faces (take that, James!), and heard countless whispers of "Weasley, Rose Weasley?" around her.

 _Yes,_ she wanted to scream, _I am Rose Weasley._

As she made her way towards her Headmistress, her head still in reverie, and the "Bonne chance!" echoing across the Great Hall, she realized this truly was one of the best moments of her life. It was a moment where she no longer dwelled in the shadows of those who came before her, but now, she is absorbing her own limelight, one that her surname cannot steal from her.

That is, until she heard the next name, loud and clear, like an alarm clock that shook her awake from her dream.

"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy from the Durmstrang Institute!"

He walked up to take his place next to her in the most arrogant manner – his hands stuffed in that poor excuse of a funeral suit they call a uniform – with Durmstrang's predominantly male yelps and cheers behind him. Rose wanted to slap the smirk off of Malfoy's face, if such an action was even possible – it seemed like his facial muscles had permanently contorted itself to fit his obnoxious expression.

"Bonne chance, Mademoiselle," he said, leaning down so close towards her that his forehead nearly touched her sideswept fringe. His hand was extended, almost truce-like.

"Albus Severus Potter from Hogwarts!"

Rose's brain didn't even register the fact that her cousin, who had unwillingly been cast into the Tournament, had been chosen. Instead, she had come up with the most unladylike statement she had ever said ever since she began school at Beauxbatons.

It was something straight out of the male Wotters' vocabulary and utterly surprising to Scorpius Malfoy. Rose Weasley pursed her smooth pink lips, gripped Scorpius' hand in a firm handshake, and said sweetly, "Pardon my French, Malfoy, but you can suck my nonexistent dick that's longer than yours."


End file.
